Finding Hope
by iDeathMonkey
Summary: Fang gets an expiration date. The flock has to go through lots of events, and all the while Fang is dying and Max is trying to save him. Promises are made and broken, secrets are spilled and erased. Sacrifices will be made. COMPLETE!-2013-I will also be slowly filling in plot holes, MAYBE adding a chapter or two!
1. Expiration Date

Okay, so my friends and me came up with this Max Ride story. I hope you enjoy it! Oh, and I don't own Maximum Ride (even though I wish I did) Oh, and the - - marks signify point of view changes or time passing.

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Fang wiped the steam off of the mirror, sighing heavily. It was good to have the whole flock safe for just a few days at Dr. Martinez's house.

They were off searching for their parents again, while trying to find out more about their new enemy; Mr. Chu.

It was still nice to relax, though. He could already smell the homemade cookies that were baking.

For now, everything was perfect.

Fang rubbed the back of his neck, trying to get some of the kinks out from his lack of sleep the night before. Something had felt…off.

He saw something on his neck that made him freeze.

What—Was that—No, it couldn't be. Max was older than him, and it definitely hadn't happened to her.

But he could see it perfectly clear.

An expiration date.

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I sat there in my mom's kitchen with Ella chattering to Nudge, Angel, and Iggy, while Gazzy and Fang took showers and my mom made cookies. The homemade/ made-from-scratch kind.

But something was scratching inside me, making me feel uneasy as Fang came out with a black button up shirt on, with the collar up.

"What drove you to dress like that, Fang?" I called. He shot an un-amused glance in my general direction.

I immediately sat up. Something was way wrong with him. He never acted this way, even on his worse days.

I shot him a look that said, _Don't you even think about lying. Something's wrong and we both know it._

He just raised his eyebrows in that Fang-like way of his and flopped into a chair across from me.

I let it drop for now. I make him talk when we were alone.

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Of course, over the next three days, I never once had a chance to talk to Fang in private.

And then we had to leave. We were going to some meeting for some organization somewhere in New York. Me and my flock, and that was it.

We were catching a ride on yet _another _jet to D.C. and then flying the rest of the way to New York.

I hugged my mom and Ella goodbye and gave only a smile to Jeb, but he was coming with us, so that didn't really matter.

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Fang was glad that Max hadn't gotten a chance to talk to him. He didn't want to tell her until he was completely positive that it was an expiration date. But something deep down inside of him kept telling him to suck it up and tell Max.

And another part of him said that it _was_ his expiration date, that he was doomed to die in just a month and a half.

He didn't listen to that part, though. He just ignored it and made sure everything was as normal as possible.

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Something was definitely wrong. Fang had hardly said two words, which really wasn't unusual for him, but his face was…different. Strained, tired. Sad.

Even the cramped jet seemed to not bug him as much as it usually would. He seemed deeply troubled by something far worse.

And as soon as we landed then took off again, this time flying ourselves, he didn't seem to be as free as he usually would be whenever he flew.

"Since when are you mopey?" I demanded, swooping closer to him. Not even Angel could seem to figure out what was wrong with him.

"What do you mean, mopey?" he asked in a flat tone, glancing sideways at me.

"Mopey as in not talking _at all_ and not liking _anything _we do. Mopey as in something's way wrong. What got into you?" I snarled.

"It's nothing." He muttered, darting upwards quickly. I followed him.

"Nothing's always something!" I called.

I could almost hear him roll his eyes.

I swooped into place beside him again.

"I know you're hiding something, and you're going to tell me whether you like it or not!" I threatened. It worked; he smiled. But it vanished quickly.

"Then you're going to have to kill—" He seemed to choke for a second then recovered. "You'll have to beat me into a bloody pulp before I tell you." He said a darted off, flying incredibly fast. I'd let it drop this time.

Maybe he'd tell me when he was ready. If not, I would get it out of him.

It bugged me to see him so down and so…so…so _not Fang_.

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_I hope you liked it! I know it was short and kinda boring, but it'll get better, I swear!!! REVIEWS! I need at least 3-4 reviews to do another chapter!_


	2. Caught

Thank you to the reviewers, even though there were only three! And no, Fang isn't going to die. (He's too awesome!)

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Fang sat on his bed alone in the hotel room. Everyone but him was in the girls' room. Even Jeb. He didn't mind it, though. He wanted time alone, time to think.

There were only a few things left that he wanted from his life.

More time with Max. To see the flock safe and happy.

To find his parents.

He wasn't going to be selfish and ask for more, but those were the things he wanted before he…expired.

One tear slipped down his cheek.

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Of course everyone was clean, happy, and having a good time. Except Fang, who was still in his room.

I hadn't seen him hardly at all that night.

I got up silently and snuck down the hallway.

I opened the door without knocking and froze immediately.

He looked bad. Really bad. His head was in his hands and one tear was falling silently down his cheek.

Fang crying?

It must be something _really _bad for him to get upset like this. My throat closed. Fang _never_ cried. Ever.

"Fang, jeez, what's wrong?" I managed to choke out. His head snapped up and his dark eyes met mine, filled with sorrow.

He wiped furiously at his eyes and turned away from me.

"Nothing. Really. Don't bug me about it." His voice was angry.

I sat down next to him anyways. I vaguely noticed that he had on another dark button up shirt with the collar up, shielding his neck.

I lifted my hand to pull it down, but he slapped it away.

"Don't." That was the only thing he said.

Part of me wanted to be stubborn and knock him out just so I could move the collar, but another part of me told that I didn't want to see.

I sadly listened to the first part. I lunged for the collar, pulling it down. Fang was too late to stop me.

I pulled it down, and saw…nothing.

"Told you I just like to wear my shirts like this." He muttered. I let it go, again.

"No you didn't, but whatever." I mumbled and left the room.

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Fang was glad that he'd used makeup to cover up the expiration date on his neck.

He was furious that he hadn't had the guts to wipe it off and just tell Max. He was furious that she'd caught him _crying._

"Stupid, stupid, _stupid." _He growled to himself angrily.

He'd tell her next time. He swore he would.

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_Sorry the chapter was so short, but I ran out of time! Hope you liked it, and REVIEW PLEASE!!!!_


	3. Pink Boxers!

_Thank you many times over to all of my wonderful reviewers!! You all get imaginary cookies and cakes!!!! You guys rock!_

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Boy, I was glad to be out of those conference rooms in New York. We all know quite well I much I absolutely _adore_ conference rooms.

And if you didn't catch that, I was being sarcastic about loving them.

Anyway, I didn't even really remember what we'd been doing.

I didn't really remember anything that happened after I confronted Fang.

We were in another safe house, somewhere in Mexico or something. We all had our own rooms. My mom and Ella had to leave, so it was me, the flock, and Jeb. The goodbyes had been mushy, crying, lots of hugs and love, etcetera, etcetera.

Wonderful. Of course I still didn't trust Jeb, but my mom did, so I guess it counted for something.

We were all watching a movie and scarfing pizza and taking showers. Beautiful, magnificent, and hot showers. Did I mention wonderful or hot?

I heard the water shut off in one of the bathrooms and decided it was my turn to take my shower.

I walked right into the bathroom and—froze. There was Fang, shoulders hunched, hands gripping the edge of the sink tightly. He looked up, startled.

My cheeks flushed bright red. I could only stare.

Since when had he gotten a six-pack?

Then I started laughing hysterically.

He was only in a pair of _hot pink _boxers.

His face flushed this time.

"Since when—do you—wear—pink?" I managed to choke out n between giggles.

"They're Iggy's….." he said, his voice fading as he looked at me. I was holding my stomach with a wild grin on my face, leaning against the closed door.

_You should stay with Jeb for awhile. Buy a house, go to school. _The Voice. Great. My smile instantly faded.

"And why would we do that?" I demanded, sadly, out loud.

Fang's eyebrows rose.

He seemed to read my mind. He nodded slightly. I really hoped he hadn't developed Angel's skill without telling me. Really, really hoped.

Then I happened to see Fang's—Iggy's—boxers and burst into hysterics all over again.

Until Fang put his arms on either side of me, trapping me against the door.

Until his mouth met mine and every thought I'd just had flew out the window.

I moved my head slightly to the side, deepening the kiss.

If I could have my way, I'd spend every second kissing Fang.

He pulled away all too soon. But then I heard it—snickering.

My eyes flew open and I wrenched open the door. Iggy and Gazzy.

"Get your butts outta here before you lose them!" I bellowed. They immediately disappeared.

Huh. Maybe they were finally learning to listen to me.

I turned back to Fang, who was rubbing the back of his neck.

That made me really suspicious for some reason.

"Is your neck okay?" I asked. I was genuinely concerned.

"Yeah."

Let's hear it for Mr. Talkative.

He still didn't stop massaging his neck, though.

"You sure?" I asked. I reached up slowly.

"Let me see it." I whispered.

Surprisingly he gave in, his face contorting with grief.

I brushed his hand away.

His eyes locked onto mine with a final plead.

I knew I shouldn't ignore it, but I wanted to know.

Something was up.

"Max…." Fang whispered his voice cracking.

But I barely paid attention to him.

My gaze was riveted to what I saw on the back of his neck.

An expiration date.

_His _expiration date.

"Fang—It's—Oh god." I started sobbing into his chest.

He was going to die.

He was going to _die _and there was nothing I could do about it.

I had to make it last. Our time together was extremely limited.

"I love you, Fang. I love you." I sobbed.

And it was the complete truth.

"I love you." Fang whispered into my hair.

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_FAXNESS!!! Don't ya love, love, love it? I do! I had to add some humor in, thus the pink boxers*snickers* but I also had to make Max find out about Fang's expiration date. And I had to add that there at the end. REVIEW PLEASE! I want at least 3-5 before another chapter comes! _


	4. Attacks

_Okay, so most of you guys are saying that the pink boxers weren't anything Fang would do. He's dying people! He doesn't care anymore! But anyways, the deal is, he didn't have anything else, so he wore a pair of Iggy's boxers. But I thought the pink would be funny/cute. And a lot of you want me to update quicker and make the chapters longer, but I'm always busy and my laptop broke so I basically update whenever I can. I try, I really do. But here's chapter four, and I'll make it as long as I can!!_

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After my somewhat embarrassing weep-fest, we ended up on the floor of the bathroom. Fang was sitting cross-legged against the bathtub, and I was in his lap, my legs hanging over one of his, and my arms were curled up against his chest.

It'd been about forty-five minutes since my horrifying discovery, but I knew our thoughts had become controlled so Angel wouldn't hear.

We'd silently agreed to keep this to our selves. For now.

A knock at the door _caused_ me to jump.

"What are you guys _doing _in there?" Iggy's voice demanded.

Fang stood with me still in his arms.

"Sorry, Ig." He said, and pulled me out with him. Iggy barely glanced in our general direction.

We went into Fang's shared room and he got dressed with me sitting on one of the beds, staring miserably out of the window.

It was raining.

I suddenly just wanted to throw myself out of the window, pour on the speed and go somewhere nobody could find me.

But I wanted Fang to come with me.

Suddenly, Jeb was bursting through the door, his eyes wild, and he was panting.

"Those things from Hawaii. The—the M-Geeks. They're outside. With guns, and the door is completely destroyed." I looked at him like he was crazy.

"There wasn't any noise." I said, standing up.

I wouldn't have noticed any, anyways.

"Silencers." Jeb said, and then I heard it.

The steady whizzing of bullets and then the yells of the flock.

"But Iggy was just—" I started, and then realized that they could've started shooting two minutes ago, while Fang was dressing.

I ran out of the room with Fang on my heels and immediately came face to face with, like, _thirty_ of the M-Geeks.

Holy moly they were fast.

I launched into battle-mode and swung my leg around to knock its ankles out. I brought both of my hands down, chopping another on the head as the previous one collapsed, only to have to roundhouse-kick three in a row that came at me from the left.

"Fang! Behind you!" I shouted as six or so got past me to Fang.

What felt like forever, but was really only like ten minutes, we were surrounded by bits-o-bots.

"Report!" I shouted. I only saw Nudge, Total, Fang, and Jeb.

"Right here." Called Angel, who came around the corner. She had a long scratch on one side of her face that would need more patching up than usual, but other than that, she had only the regular scrapes and bruises.

Nudge seemed fine. Total crawled out from under a table.

Fang had a gash on his left arm and a similar cut like Angel's on his cheek.

Iggy and Gazzy appeared.

They were okay, too.

Fang and Angel got the worst.

I went to work at patching Fang's arm, but he brushed me off and nodded his head towards Angel.

I gave him one last look but went over to Angel.

"You okay, sweetie?" I asked. She nodded.

"I didn't even know they were coming." She whispered and her eyebrows pulled together.

That didn't seem so strange to me, but whatever.

"I understand, Jeb that you have somewhere safe for us to stay." I noted, bringing up what the Voice had said earlier.

Jeb looked up at me from where he sat on the floor, surprised.

"Actually, yes. It's in a very secluded location, and nobody there knows who you are. You can stay att a house I recently bought and go to the school. It's safe."

I raised my eyebrows.

Well, it sounded good enough.

For now.

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_I'm so sorry it wasn't longer, but I ran out of time again!! The next chapter will be longer!!! And that button down there, the one that says review….I dare you to click it. Go on. Do it. _


	5. Wishes

_This chapter will be kinda short….sorry. And I also failed to mention that the characters will be mostly like themselves…..only a little OOC. Fang's dying people! It's bound to happen! But anyways, here is chapter five . \m/ \./ \m/ rock on!_

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We took a plane to Virginia, which was where this house and school were at. Again, I was _being flown_ to my destination. In an oversized sardine can.

As we landed, Jeb cleared his throat, gaining everyone's attention.

"I'm going to stay here on the plane, but you guys are going to fly." He said mysteriously.

"Fly _where_?" I demanded. The Jebster locked his gaze on me.

"A considerably large island that's about 10 miles off the coast. You'll know it when you see it. I'm going to clear some things up, but I'll give you directions to the house."

My eyebrows shot up. But I figured that we were already in this mess, so why not?

_It'll be good for you guys. Especially Fang. A nice rest is just what you need. _The Voice. Of course. At least it wasn't spewing fortune cookie crap.

"You heard the man." I said to the flock as we exited the plane.

Jeb handed me a piece of paper. I looked it over, handed it to Fang, and then he handed it back to Jeb.

"Thanks. We'll see you there, I guess." I said and launched myself into the air.

I felt the wind collect under my wings as I snapped them out, buoying me up into the bright blue sky.

I loved flying. I was made to fly, couldn't imagine what life would be like without my wings. I was supposed to be in the air. My body was adapted, right down to the red blood cells.

Only about twenty or so minutes later, we saw the island, and the bridge that connected it to the mainland.

Fang and I swooped towards one corner of it unison, knowing exactly how to get there. I looked over and smiled at him. He smiled back and I faltered for a split second, dipping about a foot. His smile grew. I scowled.

"That wasn't funny." I mumbled.

"Yes, it was." He said, swerving out of kicking range.

I huffed and glared straight ahead. I heard him chuckle softly once from behind me and I rolled my eyes.

Three or so minutes later, we saw it.

A huge house tucked into the forest, completely concealed from everywhere but the air.

Actually, I didn't see it until we were really close. I mean _really close_. Even with my raptor vision.

Huh. Jeb had picked well.

"Thirty-five degrees right, Ig, then down at about three o'clock." I said, and saw Iggy nod.

We aimed downward and landed poetically. Well, all of us except Total, who still wasn't very good at his landings.

I have to admit, that house was dang cute.

The side we were facing was glass and faced the east. Which was the ocean. We were on a beach.

"OMG! This place is soooo cute!" Nudge crowed. We went to the west side, to the front door and walked inside.

"Cool!" Gazzy crowed, seeing the complete TV and surround sound system. There were _loads _of DVDs. I even saw an Xbox or something. I didn't really care.

"What. Does. It. Look. Like?" Iggy demanded. Fang described it to him in a low murmur.

I was too busy looking around the house, trying to familiarize it, memorize the exits. Call me paranoid, if you will.

But then I stopped and took time to appreciate it. The couch and recliners in front of the TV were beige. The carpet was a light caramel color. To the right of the front door were some stairs.

I walked straight out of the living room to the glass wall, which had another room in front of it. A game room.

I saw an air hockey able, a pool table, two foosball tables, ping pong, another Xbox, a Playstation 2, and a pinball machine.

Right in front of the table was a deep mahogany coffee table, exactly like the one in the front room, and a brown leather couch. A really big and comfy looking couch. I knew that in the morning, I could come down here, sit on the couch, and watch the sun rise above the horizon. Right now, in the middle of the now cloudy day, I could see the beach, and the waves crashing onto shore.

I turned to the right and saw a _huge _kitchen with stainless steel appliances.

I turned around and headed for the stairs. I went up them slowly and realized that there was a bathroom under them. Huh. A secluded bathroom under the stairs. I turned around to look back to the east windows and saw that another bathroom was on its left.

I saw Nudge, then Angel, rush past the stairs.

Looking up, I saw an enormous skylight, with an even larger chandelier hanging from it, the outside light throwing multicolored prisms onto the wall just below the skylight. I went up the rest of the stairs, the skylight making me feel more reassured.

I realized that everyone had their own separate room.

Angel had a pink room that was princess themed, and looked out over the forest, which was full of pretty birds and flowers and trees.

Nudge's room was a bright teal color with black and white themed _everything_.

Iggy's room looked perfect for him-it was beige, with a pale blue comforter on the bed and a sky blue bathroom. It even had a beige couch in one corner, with a TV in front of it.

Gazzy's room was cowboy and train themed, which was absolutely _perfect _for an eight year old.

"Max! Look at this!" Gazzy cried, holding up some Hot Wheels.

I grinned.

He smiled brightly back and ran to show Iggy.

Iggy had his own bathroom, as well as Nudge, and there was one right at the top of the stairs, plus the two downstairs.

Last was Fang's room, the next to last room on the second story of our new house.

My heart thumped as I pushed open the door.

He looked away from the window, startled. And then he gave a soft smile that could stop the universe, just so it could enjoy the smile while it lasted.

I pulled my gaze away with difficulty and surveyed the room.

It had beautiful dark blue walls with a matching comforter and a black couch by the gigantic window, which was on the left side of the room, facing both the forest and ocean. One side of the window had a white window seat.

"It suits you." I managed after a few minutes.

Fang moved over to me.

"Have you seen _your _room yet?" he whispered, his face inches from mine.

"No." I whispered back. I realized that everyone's room was absolutely _perfect _for them. I really wanted to see my room now.

I turned, grabbing Fang's hand, and moved to the end of the hallway, facing the only door I hadn't opened.

I reached out and grabbed the doorknob, and twisted it slowly.

I gasped.

It was beautiful, and perfect, and so completely _mine_.

The wall I was looking at was glass, like most of the house.

But it had the best view of the beach. The bed was really, really big, with a light green comforter and green and purple pillows of every shade.

In front of the bed was a flat screen TV on top of a dresser, with a neat row of DVDs beside it.

On one side of the bed was a little whit bedside table with a blue crystal lamp, with a shiny blue lampshade.

The window was one big, cushy window seat with black pillows here and there.

Nothing seemed to match perfectly, but yet everything did.

I noticed a bathroom that was lavender and beach themed. And a huge closet. That was completely chock full of clothes.

"Told you so." Fang murmured in my ear.

"I love it!" I gasped.

But then I heard a car approaching and froze. Fang froze behind me.

"Car!" I said just loud enough for the rest of the flock to hear me.

All of them rushed out into the hall, already shifting into battle mode.

I ran silently to the bathroom at the other end of the hall.

I used one finger to move the curtain away from the window and peered out of it.

"Never mind!" I called. "It's just Jeb!"

Fang sighed next to me.

"Are you okay?" I breathed, so only he could hear me. He nodded weakly.

"I'm just…not feeling good." My heart tightened and tears formed in my eyes.

"Fang…." I whispered softly.

"Stop it. Don't worry about me. I'm fine." He commanded, his voice like steel.

I looked down at my feet.

"I just wish…" I looked into his impassive face.

"Don't." He said through his teeth.

I closed my eyes and turned my head away.

I felt his strong, wiry arms wrap around me. I buried my face into his chest and fought the tears, hearing him sigh.

"Don't leave me. You promised you'd never leave again." I said in a small and helpless voice.

"I know. I'll fix this. I'm sorry." In seven words, Fang had spoken everything he'd needed to. All of his emotions were hidden in those words. He tilted my chin up and kissed me gently.

"I'll fix it, I promise." He whispered.

Just then, I heard someone calling my name.

"Max?" The familiar voice was coming up the stairs.

"Mom?" I called, flying out of the bathroom.

"Max!"

Yes, it was my mom, Dr. Valencia Martinez.

"What are you doing here?" I asked her, immediately getting a hug.

"I'm staying in the guest room next to Jeb's downstairs for a couple of days. To help you guys get settled. Have you seen your rooms yet?" I nodded in answer to her question.

Just then, everything seemed to be okay, at least for the moment.

We had an awesome new house, and my flock was safe and happy, and fro a second, it didn't seem like Fang was dying.

I heard a gasp, and Angel came rushing out of her room.

"He's _what_?" she demanded.

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_Oooooohhh, cliffy! Ad I know I said this chapter would be short but I changed my mind! And the island they're on doesn't exist by the way. Review please!!!!!!_


	6. Alone Time

_This chapter is dedicated to St. Fang of Boredom, fanglvr13, IBleedAndIBreatheNoMore, and BlueWater626! You guys review lots of times and make me feel better!! And a special thanks to linz96!!!! Heh, you know why(purple palm trees! And I'm sorry for the grill incident!!!!!!!!!!!) Well, I have a little bit of time today, so here's another chapter, whether it be long or short!!_

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"He's _what_?" Angel repeated, tears forming in her innocent blue eyes.

"Um, what are you talking about, sweetie?" I asked with a forced smile.

"Fang." She whispered, turning to him.

He turned to me, helplessness in his eyes.

_Angel, sweetie, please, not right now. Nothing's wrong. _I practically shouted at her in my mind.

_She deserves to know. _ Ugh, the Voice had to but in right now, didn't it?

"Max, why didn't you guys tell me?" Angel asked, heartbreak in her eyes.

"Angel, not now. Please." I begged desperately.

Her head was hanging down.

"Please tell me later." She whispered and went back to her new room.

"Uh, Max? What was that about?" my mom asked.

"Nothing" I mumbled and pushed past her and Fang to go to my new room.

I heaved open a small window and launched myself out, snapping out my wings.

I flew over the ocean, using my warp drive. I hadn't used it in forever. It felt really good to go this fast, with my wings barely moving, seeming to carry me forward by themselves. I flew close to the water, feeling its spray on my face every once in a while. I slowed down and stuck my hand in the water. It was nice and cool.

I shot straight into the sky until I could actually see the island. Which was like thirty miles in the distance.

Wow. I'd gone far.

I closed my eyes and floated upwards, wheeling around in circles just like the hawks had.

It felt so good to fly. Especially alone. It was nice to get away every once in awhile.

Everything was just so insanely weird, and only minutes before it'd felt like everything was perfect. And then it fell apart. Angel knew Fang was dying, and I hadn't handled it well. What was wrong with me?

I decided to head back. I used my warp drive again, but only for a minute. I flew fast a and hard, with my eyes half closed against the wind.

Then I collided with something big and dark.

I wheezed, the air knocked out of me. I got into position and readied myself to kick someone's butt.

"Max!" It was Fang.

"What the heck are you doing out here?" I demanded?

"Coming after you." He said in a quiet voice. I turned back towards the house and continued on my way.

"I need to be alone, Fang." I said quietly.

I slowed down so I could look at him.

"I'm sorry, but I just….I can't handle all of this right now. And I'm so sorry, and I really want to spend a lot of time with you, but I…I can't." Fang was the only person in the entire world that I trusted enough to tell stuff like this to.

"I know," was all he said. He sped up. I waited until he was really far ahead of me until I followed.

Fang was dying. Angel knew he was dying. We only had a limited amount of time left. Someone was still after us.

It was just too much.

I finally landed on the beach, where Fang was nowhere to be seen.

And know I wanted to be with him, to spend every single moment with him.

I needed him with me. I didn't know what I'd do without him. Once he was gone. Tears formed in my eyes, and I sank to my knees, helpless.

Without warning, I felt someone's arms wrap around me. I gasped. Then realized it was Fang.

"I know, I know, but…." He trailed off.

"It's okay." I whispered.

Before I knew it, we were kissing. He tilted his head to kiss me better. This kiss was more desperate and intimate than our kisses had ever been.

Someone cleared their throat and we broke apart, breathing in gasps of air.

"Max, we need to talk."

My mom.

"Angel told me what you were….thinking. I think I might have a way to help. "

I was on my feet in an instant, my fingers intertwined with Fang's.

"How?" I practically snarled.

"First…can I see it?" she asked, turning to face Fang.

He nodded and pulled the collar of his shirt down. She gasped.

"I—That may be too soon."

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_Another cliffy! I know this one was short….sorry! But it's another chapter! And again, sorry for the grill incident linz96!!_


	7. Party

_I'm just doing so good this weekend! Three chapters in a row, that's a record!! Maybe I'm feeling generous, maybe I just have a lot of time…..you never know! And this chapter has to be dedicated to Someoneyoudon'tknowprobably! That review for chapter six was funny! And I agree! _

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"What do you mean?" I demanded, my voice just under a shout.

Fang squeezed my hand—his version of a reassuring hug.

"Well, I'll need time and I don't know….But I'll try, Max. I swear I'll try."

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The next day, the flock and I were having loads of fun flying and playing a little ways down the beach. And swimming. Swimming is especially fun when you have invisible gills and don't have to come up for air.

Around noon, we walked down the beach towards the house, and went around to the front door, ready for lunch. A _really big _lunch.

But as soon as Gazzy yanked open the door, like fifty people yelled "Surprise!"

I immediately froze.

"Max!" My mom called, pushing through the crowd.

"What's—What's this?" I stuttered.

"The neighbors are here to welcome you guys to your new home. We've been planning this for a while." She explained.

"A party…." I said slowly.

She nodded.

The rest of the flock had already been introduced to kids their ages. Except me and Fang. Nudge was talking excitedly to a little girl with blonde hair that was her age. Angel was showing Total to about three girls that looked to be around her age.

Gazzy and Iggy were in the same positions. Iggy had a few guys his age talking to him, as well as Gazzy.

"Iggy's supposed to be Brian, Gazzy is James, Fang is Nick, Nudge is Krystal, and Angel is Angela. Jeb and I adopted all of you guys, except you, Max. That didn't change. Call Jeb 'Dad' around everyone." My mom whispered into my ear.

"And I'm assuming that everyone besides me knew this?" I asked.

"We went over it yesterday while you were out."

My eyes narrowed.

"Jeb and I are divorced and I'm just visiting." She added.

"Are you Max?" a girl my age with short brown hair asked. I nodded.

"Cool. I'm Stephanie. Everyone just calls me Steph, though." She said.

She looked pointedly at my hand that was laced with Fang's.

"I thought he was your brother." She said.

"Um, not really. He's just…it's different than that, really." I attempted to explain.

"Oh." That was all she said.

Fang squeezed my hand once more and moved away. I saw what direction he was going in, and started to follow. I hesitated and looked back at Stephanie.

"Food." I said and followed Fang.

I went into the kitchen and began to fill two plates with food. I noticed that Stephanie had followed and had only put a little sandwich on a napkin.

"Do you normally eat like this, or are you just starving today?" she asked with a smile.

"I always eat like this." I said nonchalantly. 'What about you? You not hungry or are you on a..a diet or something?" I asked, not trying to be rude.

"I ate before I came." She said, smiling. I smiled too. I guess she was kind of okay.

I noticed that Fang had disappeared and my heart gave a little cute.

"Is something wrong with your brother? Brian, I think." She said, looking at Iggy, who was trailing behind Gazzy, looking nervous.

"He's blind." I said, like I was talking to a kindergartener.

"Oh my gosh, how did that happen? Was he born that way?" she asked, actually sounding concerned. I frowned.

"Um….yeah. I think." I said. It made since. Technically, with our cover story, I could say that, since,--in our cover story—I hadn't known Iggy since he was born.

"You wanna eat in my room?" I asked suddenly, surprising both myself and Stephanie.

"Uh, sure. That'd be cool." We both pushed through the crowd and I led her up the stairs and all the way down the hallway.

I pushed open my door and she gasped.

"I'm totally jealous of your room!" she said with envy.

"I know." I said, and we both cracked up. We sat on the window seat and she munched on her sandwich while I noisily wolfed down my food.

About seven later, both of my plates were empty.

"How do you stay so skinny if you eat like that every day? Not to be rude, but I'm seriously curious." She asked.

"Well, I need about 3,000 calories a day, minimum. And I stay skinny because of my w—Well, I exercise a _lot _every day." I almost said wings. Why would I tell this normal girl with a normal life about my seriously weird, complicated, and _really tiring _life.

"Oh. Is it like a medical condition or something?" she asked.

"Sure." I mumbled and turned to stare out of the window.

I really wanted to be in the sky right now. I was even ready to risk snapping out my wings in front of this stranger.

My thoughts were interrupted when I heard a knock at the door.

I looked up and called "Come in."

Fang steeped through the door.

"Um, can I borrow Max for a few minutes?" He asked Stephanie.

"I don't mind. I'll go back downstairs." She stood up as Fang moved over to me. "I'll see you later." She called back at the door. "Later." I called back.

Once she was out of range, Fang grabbed my hand and pulled me up. "I have a surprise. That I just found." I followed him down the stairs and then under them, to a door that wasn't the bathroom.

"Where does this go?" I asked. I remembered seeing it, and then…Oh, yeah, it was the basement, which was the guest room. It had a bathroom down there, too.

Fang looked around, making sure nobody saw us and he led me down the stairs.

"Yeah, this is where Mom is staying. For now." I mumbled, mostly to myself.

"Yeah, and our escape." He said with a tiny smile. He opened a door and I saw stairs. That went up.

"Where does this go?" I asked again, impatient this time. His smile grew.

"Up."

We climbed steadily up the stairs. Until we reached a door at the top. Fang opened it, and I gasped, then smiled. We were on the roof.

"Well, what're you waiting for? Let's go." Fang called, and then hurled himself into the sky, his beautiful black wings unfurling, almost purple in the sunlight. He was soon a tiny speck even with my raptor vision. I sighed, watching him turn through the sky, looking very much like a hawk. Fang had always been the most graceful of us.

I sighed again and threw myself upwards, snapping out my wings at the last second, and felt that wonderful feeling of the wind gathering under them, blowing through my feathers.

I have to say, my wings were pretty darn impressive. All thirteen feet of bird kid glory.

Very soon I was right below Fang, who was smiling down at me. "Thank you." I said, just loud enough for him to hear. Let me tell you, it took mucho amounts of pride-swallowing for me to say that.

His grin widened.

"You're welcome." He said softly. I almost didn't catch it.

Finally, after eons of wonderful flying, full of wheeling through the sky, flying tag, and very careful kissing, Fang swooped down—carefully—and kissed me once more. This kiss was so awesome. I mean, it was like nothing I'd ever felt before. I quit flapping my wings, forgetting how to, forgetting my name, forgetting everything except Fang. We dipped about twenty feet, since Fang was holding all of the weight. I felt him grin against my mouth, and then we were falling.

Have you ever kissed while freefalling? Well, I guess you haven't. But let me tell you, it sure is something. We fell forever, never breaking the kiss. When the ground was scary close, Fang started flapping again, and pulled away, his hair blown straight up from the wind.

We were both laughing hard, and staring at each other in wonder. I finally pushed away from him and flew on my own.

"Wow." I managed. Fang chuckled once more.

"We should head back." He said, and we both swooped around in big graceful arcs and aimed downward.

We landed on the roof without any sound. Well, except for the noise of the trees whapping us in the face. It was way worse landing and going downwards through the trees than it was taking off and going through them.

We snuck back to the party and acted like we hadn't gone anywhere. Stephanie saw me and waved me over. She was with a couple of other girls our age.

Her eyebrows rose slightly at the sight of my messy hair.

"Max, this is Destiny, and Sarah." She motioned first to a redhead, who I immediately disliked because she was one) a redhead, and two) looking at Fang. Stephanie motioned next to a petite strawberry blonde.

"Uh, hey." I said awkwardly. They both mumbled 'hi' and smiled.

They both suddenly seemed to have somewhere else to be and walked off.

"Where did you guys go?" Stephanie asked immediately after they were gone.

"The roof." I said, which was partly true. "It's windy." I added, which was completely true.

"And what did you guys do up there?' she asked, one eyebrow raised.

"Nothing." Again, the truth. We didn't make out until we were _way_ above the roof.

She rolled her eyes. "Sure. And I stayed down here with a _talking dog_." She said, sarcasm dripping. I couldn't help it. I laughed. She didn't know how right she was. She really had stayed here with a talking dog.

"What?" she demanded.

"You don't—" I giggled again. "Nothing." I finally said.

She rolled her eyes, then smiled.

"I know this will sound extremely weird to you, but your brother, Brian, is really cute." I gagged involuntarily.

"Sorry, what?" I asked, not sure if I'd heard right.

"Brian, he's really cute. And it's so cool how he never misses the trashcan or a high five or misplaces anything. And it's way cool how he doesn't make a mess when he eats." She said, blushing.

"Yeah, okay. I'll remember to mention that to him." I muttered absently, searching the room of crowded people for Fang. I saw him go down the hallway upstairs.

I bolted for the stairs, fear gripping my heart. A trickle of ice cold terror dribbled down my spine.

Oh no. I hoped that his day wasn't today. I couldn't remember anymore.

I crashed into his room, only to see him collapsed on his bed.

"Fang!" I cried, throwing myself at him.

"Who's Fang?" Stephanie demanded from behind me.

I ignored her.

"Fang? Oh god, talk to me!" I choked on a sob, and rolled Fang over.

"S'nothin'." He mumbled.

"Fang, it's—It's not today, is it?" I asked in a small voice.

"No. Jus' not feelin' good. Tired. It comes and goes like this. Since I found it." He breathed, his voice barely a whisper.

"Why didn't you tell me?" I demanded. His eyelids fluttered open, and his hurting black eyes locked onto mine.

"Didn't want you to worry." He muttered, closing his eyes again.

"Tell me next ti—" I was interrupted by Stephanie.

"What's going on? Why do you keep calling him Fang? Is he okay? Do I need to get somebody, call 911 or something?" she demanded.

"I'm fine." Fang whispered.

"M' kay." He mumbled.

His breathing evened out and slowed. He was asleep.

I stood, pulled of his shoes and threw a blanket over him.

"What's going on, Max?" Stephanie demanded again.

"I—I can't explain it. It's nothing." I insisted, pushing past her and going into my room.

She followed me and sat on my bed.

"What did you mean when you asked if 'it' was today?" she asked.

"Nothing."

"Why were you calling him Fang? Is that his nickname or something?" I disliked her more every second.

"No! It's his freaking name, now just leave me alone, okay?!" I shouted.

Her eyes widened with fear. I knew I looked menacing.

"Why—Why's his name Fang?" She never gave up, did she?

I was so angry, I didn't even think about what I was doing.

I threw open my window and tossed myself out, unfurling my wings and pouring on the speed, not caring who saw.

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_Wowie, I ended this with 2107 words! This is a loooong chapter, and it has another cliffy!! Mwahahahaha! Reviews please! Reviews make me happy, and me being happy produces more long chapters faster!_


	8. Surprises

_Agg!! *attempts to pull hair out* I just read over chapter seven, and there are a ton of mistakes!! I'm so sorry! I was really tired when I wrote it. I was busy all day that day, and now my back hurts….But I'm trying to get some chapters out before testing starts even though I'm supposed to be working on a project right now! *teehee* This chapter is dedicated to Baakthatsthenoiseachickenmakes, and to Someoneyoudon'tknowprobably! Thanks for the reviews! _

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The wind felt good on my face. I was so glad to be out of there, leaving all of my worries behind me. Jeez, what was I thinking? I just freaking blew my cover! We were supposed to be relaxing and living a 'normal' life, and I just showed one of the neighbors my _wings_!

I sighed heavily and turned around. Jeez, how do I explain this, over even cover it up? What if she'd told someone or even _everyone_? I went faster, using my warp drive, which I seemed to be using a lot lately.

I flew right in the open window to my bedroom. And landed with a hard _thunk _on the floor_._ I knew several people downstairs had probably looked around, wondering what that noise was.

"_Ow, ow, ow!_" One of my wings had clipped the side of the window. I gritted my teeth and pulled my right wing around, and began to try to rub the pain out. Then realized I was being watched by and openmouthed Stephanie. As well as Destiny and Sarah.

I even heard Destiny whisper a few swear words.

"Um…" I said, but that's all I was able to get out. I rubbed my wing again. That'd really hurt. I should've pulled them in earlier, instead of waiting until the absolute last second, because the result had _hurt_.

"You have—You have—_wings_!" Sarah gasped, pointing.

"Uh, yeah." I said, as if it were _completely obvious_. Wait, it _was _completely obvious.

I squirmed uncomfortably. I really didn't want to be in this position.

"Do your brothers and sisters know?" Destiny demanded.

"Um…" I said again.

"They don't know, do they?" Stephanie asked, speaking up for the first time.

"Um…" was all I was able to say.

"Don't worry, your secret's safe with us." Destiny said sincerely. I snorted softly, where none of them could hear. This was entertaining. They thought I was the only one that had wings. And that the flock or my—parents—didn't know. I forced the word out, trying to complete my train of thought. I hadn't ever considered Jeb my father, except for maybe way back when, when he was good.

"Yeah, don't worry. We won't tell." Stephanie added, with Sarah nodding vigorously.

"Nick knows though, doesn't he? When you went up on the roof, you showed him, right?" Stephanie asked. I shrugged.

"Nick knows what?" Fang asked, pushing the door open. Since I knew him so well, I knew that he wasn't feeling better by any means, but his face was impassive, so nobody else could tell. But I saw the barest tightening of his jaw as he moved, the hardness in his eyes. And I could tell just by looking at his face that he knew _exactly _what we were talking about.

I shrugged and held out my hurting wing.

"Oh. That." He said with fake surprise. He was acting like he hadn't gotten used to seeing the wings yet.

I struggled to keep a straight face. Fang didn't, but that's only 'cause he's Fang.

The pain was slowly easing out of my wing. Very, very slowly.

"But none of us will tell anybody anything." Sarah said quickly. I gave a tiny smile, that was supposed to be tentative.

Suddenly, the whole flock, including Total, came rushing in.

"Max!" Nudge said, relief coloring her tone.

"Um, what?" I asked, puzzled.

"We heard that loud noise and thought something happened to you!" Gazzy explained.

I snorted. "Yeah, right. I wouldn't be the one on the floor." I said with a laugh.

Iggy chuckled. I rolled my eyes.

"I'm rolling my eyes, Ig." I informed him, then remembered that we weren't alone.

"Uh, Max? You forgot to, um, hide, you, uh…" Destiny trailed off.

Abruptly, Fang and I couldn't hold in our laughter any more. We both collapsed on the floor, clutching our sides.

"You guys…think…that…they…don't know?" I said in between giggles, tears streaming out of my eyes.

Fang laughed harder, and the flock looked at me, confusion on all of their surprisingly clean faces.

"Hey guys! Guess…what?" I said with mock seriousness, the last sentence broken by a giggle.

"I have wings!" I said, collapsing with laughter again. The flock roared with laughter in harmony with me and Fang, while that three girls looked completely lost.

I was suddenly serious. "Thanks anyway. But we're outta here." I said, and hopped to my feet.

Total trotted up to me, and then hopped nimbly onto the window seat, then out of the window, his little black wings barely keeping him aloft for a moment. Next was Angel, with her pure white wings looking exactly as an angel's would. Nudge and Gazzy, the Iggy. Finally it was just Fang and I. He squeezed my shoulder, then leapt out.

I turned back to the three normal girls, with three normal lives. That I've never had, and never will have.

"If anyone asks, we went down to the beach." I said then jumped out of the window.

I flew quickly to my flock, which was way up above me.

"What was that about?" Iggy asked from just above me.

"Um, I kind of got mad and then flew off. And hurt my wing coming back. And they thought you guys didn't know I had wings." I snorted.

They laughed. I winced at my right wing. Of course I had to bruise one of its bones _right after_ I had healed from a gunshot wound. Fang's voice snapped me out of it.

"Max? Your wing's bleeding." He said matter-of-factly. Huh?

I looked over at my right wing. And then I gasped. It sure was bleeding. Really bad. Jeezum, that's why I was flying so weird and off balance. I faltered again and dropped about twenty feet. A bone felt broken. And it'd be really bad if I fell. We were too high up. Hitting the water would break a lot of bones.

I was losing a lot of blood. I noticed that too late, seeing the trail of blood flowing out behind me. My eyelids fluttered. Oh no. No, I couldn't fall! I had…to…stay…up…

I was losing consciousness, and fast.

I began dropping like a stone.

"Max!!" Fang's voice barely reached my ears.

I saw him swoop down after me, trying to catch me, not even bothering to call to Iggy for help. But I was going too fast. He'd just get hurt.

"No…" I whispered faintly.

I really didn't want Fang to get hurt.

His arms wrapped around me just as I hit the water.

Bones cracked. It hurt, but only for a moment, and then just blackness.

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_*Cackles maniacally* Another cliffy! And I failed to mention that I found out that there was going to be a sixth Maximum Ride, called The Sky Is Falling. It's supposed to come out March 15, next year. And now I bid you all adieu! Reviews are niiiiice!_


	9. You Can't Die

_I'm just spewing chapters out as fast as I can before testing! So here I go with chapter nine, however long or short! And I just don't feel like dedicating this today….I'll dedicate it to one of my friends, Kassidy, who hasn't gotten into fanfiction yet, sadly. _

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I lurched back into reality, the final images of my fall replaying over and over in my head. Fang. Fang caught me. Fang was—Oh _God_, my shoulder hurt. And ribs. And my right wing. Pretty much my whole body. I opened my eyes finally.

"Max! You're awake!" Nudge's voice said from somewhere on my left. I groaned in response and looked over to the left. She was sitting on the window seat, anxious brown eyes staring back at me.

Angel was sitting beside her, smiling, well, angelically. And Iggy and Gazzy were beside her. But no Fang.

"Fang." That was the first word I spoke.

Each of them automatically darkened.

"He's, um, in his room. He's not looking so good." Iggy whispered.

I was lying on my stomach, which seemed to be the least hurt part of my body. My ribs hurt, but it was most likely that they were just bruised, and they hurt because I'd been laying here like this for who knew how long.

"A day and a half." Angel said quietly.

Wow. That was a long time, especially for us bird kids, who heal fast. Really fast.

I noticed that my right wing was spread out beside me, with some bandages on it. I felt like a bird kid with a broken wing. _Oh wait_, I _was _a bird kid with a broken wing. And it hurt.

"Fang." I said again. I sat up, wincing in pain.

Iggy helped me stand, and I wobbled unsteadily on my feet. Whoa, head rush.

"He's in his room." Iggy repeated.

I cared only about one thing right now, and that was Fang. I needed to see him, needed to make sure he'd be okay. I had to. He'd saved me. I owed him, in some way. I wobbled again at my door and Iggy caught me again. It was creepy how he did that.

I pushed open Fang's door, my heart thumping hard against my ribcage.

The flock sensed that I wanted to be alone and went off in different directions.

I opened the door and stared, a gasp escaping my throat.

Oh God.

"Fang!" I cried, falling to my knees beside the bed.

Not so much as an eye twitched, and his breathing was a little ragged.

"You saved me." I whispered, pain encasing my heart. Wow, that sounded really good. Like a poet. _Pain encasing my heart. _That was so true, but it sounded good.

Fang's finger twitched. I grabbed his hand, tears in my eyes.

He loved me. I hadn't doubted it before, but now I knew. He loved me, more than anything else. I needed him. He had to be here with me. It wouldn't be the same without him. And he was dying.

Unexpectedly, Fang's hand tightened around mine. I looked from his hand to his face, studying it, looking for any sign of him waking up. But his eyes didn't open. I sighed in disappointment.

"Please wake up, Fang. I need you. I need to be with you every minute. I can't stand this." I whispered brokenly.

His hand tightened around mine again. Hm.

"Fang. I love you. Wake up. Please. I need you here with me." I said sincerely. His eyelids fluttered then went still again.

"Fang. Fang, don't leave me. You promised. You said that you wouldn't ever leave me again. You promised." I kept on talking, trying to see if he'd wake up. His eyelids fluttered again.

I used my other hand to smooth some dark hair off of his face. His face was sweaty, kind of like he had a fever or something. I saw a wet washcloth on the bedside table and wiped it gently across his forehead. Then I squeezed his hand lightly.

Finally, he opened his eyes and let out a low moan.

"Fang!" I cried, immediately moving into his view.

"Max." His voice was strained, but full of relief. I knew what he was thinking; she's okay.

"I'm here. You were—You saved me. Why'd you do that, Fang? That was stupid, you could've gotten killed!" I was practically shouting at the end.

He just looked at me with his dark eyes.

"You could've died, too." He said after a minute. "I'm dying anyway." He added.

"Don't say that!" I shouted. "I don't care; I need to be with you every second! You die when _we _die remember?" I said, reminding him of what he'd told me a long while back, on the beach after I'd tried to saw my chip out with a piece of broken seashell.

He looked away.

"And since none of us are dying anytime soon, you are _not_ going to die." I said, using a no-nonsense tone.

"You don't know that. You don't know what will happen." He whispered.

"Yes, I do! I'm going to keep all of you alive, even if it kills me!" I said, my voice like steel. I actually meant those words. I'd sacrifice my life for the safety of my flock whenever the need arose. Which meant that Fang couldn't die.

"Don't say that. I'm dying, and you can't save me! Look at the Erasers! All of them are _dead_, in case you haven't noticed. They had expiration dates just like the one on my neck!" he said in a dangerous, low voice.

"It doesn't matter. I'll stop it from happening. I'll—" I was interrupted as Fang's lips met mine.

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_Sorry for the short chapter! And that quote, 'You die when we die' is from book two, near the end. This chapter was just to get some points across. And I decided against a cliffy this time! PLEASE REVIEW! _


	10. Time For School

_Well, I was going to say something here, but I forgot….Maybe I'll remember. Oh well. And I really didn't realize, or think, that chapter nine's ending was a fluff cliffy! I tried not to do a cliffy, and did it on accident! Hehheh… And I can't believe that I have 47 reviews!! I love each and every one of you for each and every one of your reviews!!! Okay, that sounds weird…lemme rephrase that—I'm so glad you guys love my story and each of you gets a shiny new virtual car of your choosing! I really wish I could buy you all a real car…*sniffles* And I like St. Fang Of Boredom's last two reviews! They were cliffing hilarious! _

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That night, I practically had to knock Fang out so Mom could give him some morphine. He certainly wasn't going to sleep with all of that pain. He wasn't going to fall asleep by himself.

"Please just let her do it, Fang." I begged. My mom was waiting quite patiently beside his bed while I tried to persuade him to let her stick a needle in his arm.

His eyebrows rose infinitesimally. "No." he said simply, using a steely voice that would make anyone do things his way. But I was used to it, and I even had a voice much like it that I used for my own arguments.

"Yes. You need it. You have to sleep." I said in an end-of-discussion voice.

After a few minutes of arguing, I finally just tackled him, while being very careful not to hurt him badly, and held out his left arm. My mom slid the needle in professionally, and I smiled in triumph.

"Cheater." Fang said just a tiny bit sleepy. About a hundred swear words were behind that one word, and only I knew it. Only about thirty seconds passed before his eyelids started to droop.

"Sleep tight." I whispered, my voice smug. Fang managed to scowl before his breathing evened out.

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Of course, I ended up getting drugged that night too.

I fell asleep ad woke refreshed, my night having been dreamless. It was pretty much the best night of sleep I'd gotten in a long time.

"Wagh!"

Turns out that Fang had woken before I had, and took it upon himself to sit on my legs and stare at me until I woke up.

He immediately started laughing.

"Not funny." I mumbled, smacking his arm. He scowled.

"Ow." He said, looking from his arm to me and back again.

I felt guilty.

"I'm so sorry. I really wasn't thinking. I didn't mean to hurt you." I said sincerely.

And of course he chuckles softly to himself which erased all of the guilt I'd felt only seconds before.

He moved off of my legs. Surprisingly, my circulation had been cut off, so it was almost painful when he moved away and the blood began to flow again.

I felt a lot better. But I knew Fang and I both needed a few more days to be completely fine.

We had a huge breakfast that morning, which is when my mom had to leave.

There were many mushy, soggy, emotional hugs that went around. She even got a hug from Fang and Iggy, which was a surprise.

"By the way, before I forget, I have one more thing to tell you." She said at the door with all of her stuff already in the car.

I sensed what was coming.

"You guys will all start school in a week."

Oh _h _no.

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In a week, we learned that we at least weren't going to a private school, so we could wear whatever, which was good. But it was still _school_. We'd had bad experiences with many different kinds of schools.

We were each going to different schools; Fang, Iggy, and I were starting the tenth grade at the local high school. Nudge was starting eighth at the middle school, and Gazzy and Angel were going to the middle school.

The schools were all called Dwight D. Eisenhower. That was pretty much where the similarities would end.

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The night before school, we had all of our school supplies ready. And the funny thing was, I wasn't nervous like all of the other students were at the beginning of the year. I was….I don't know, I seemed more or less unhappy. It was just a general 'I'm going to have to listen to adults' unhappiness.

But I laid in my bed that night, awake for many different reasons.

Fang was getting really close to his expiration date, which I now remembered was about two-ish months away.

I just couldn't sleep.

I wasn't able to fly yet, but maybe in two days.

And I just couldn't wrap my head around going to a normal school.

I eventually crept out of bed, briefly looking at my alarm clock, seeing it long enough to know that it was around two in the morning.

I padded quietly to Fang's room, pushing the door open with my fist.

"Fang?" I called extremely quietly.

No answer. I could hear his super steady breathing, and knew he wasn't pretending to be asleep. I only then realized that I was only in my underwear, bra, and a huge t-shirt.

But it was time for payback. I grinned.

I was almost completely silent as I moved over to his bed. Not even Iggy could've heard me all that well.

I scooted carefully onto the bed and sat on his legs. His breathing didn't change, and he even smiled a little in his sleep. I noticed that he was only in a pair of black pajama pants. My heart gave a weird little kick to see his bare chest.

But I had business to do, payback to give.

"Fang." I said, sorta loudly.

He jerked awake, trying to sit up.

"Ahg!" he said in surprise, then noticed that it was me. His eyes narrowed as I fell over laughing.

I knew that we were only loud enough that we could hear each other. Nobody else would wake up.

"Funny." He muttered as I sobered up.

"Yeah, it was." I said with a little giggle.

"So…" I said after a minute.

"Did you want something, cause I was actually sleeping." He said with a flat voice.

I knew that he knew that I hadn't slept a wink. That's how long we'd known each other.

That's how close we were.

Just like before, when we were rescuing my mom from Mr. Chu and I'd been realizing everything, I felt an overwhelming sense of…belonging. He was meant for me, I was meant for him. There would be no one else for me. He was it. We were perfect matches. I belonged with him, no matter what.

I needed him.

We just stared at each other. I was completely lost in my thoughts, lost in his eyes. I was lying sideways, my position mirroring his, as we laid there, staring at each other, memorizing the already familiar faces of each other.

"I love you." He whispered gently.

My heart swelled to an impossible size. And as corny as it sounds, I was about to burst, I loved him so much.

"I love you." I whispered, my voice just as gentle.

His lips touched mine.

I'd kissed him so many times lately; it was nothing new every time.

But this was the most different.

There was something so different, so _intense_, about this kiss.

My mouth opened; an invitation.

The kiss deepened, and it felt like we were one person, like we were melting together.

He rolled on top of me, his hands holding my hips down. Somehow, my shirt came off.

My heart thumped nervously.

I wasn't ready for this. I mean, I knew he was going to die really soon, but we were too young.

Somehow, Fang sensed my hesitation, and he pulled away.

"I won't do anything you're not ready to do." He whispered.

He kissed me one more time, and then wrapped his strong, wiry arms around me.

Pretty soon, I fell asleep, feeling completely safe and almost—but not quite—completely relaxed.

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I woke up to gasps, and a groggy Fang, who was waking up for the same reasons.

"Max! Fang!" Nudge said from the doorway, the whole flock behind her, including Total.

"Wow. You guys don't waste time, do you?" Total muttered, shaking his head.

"Wha—what do you mean?" I asked in a bleary voice.

"Well….you guys….you know…" Gazzy trailed off.

I was completely lost. I had no idea what they were all staring at, looking awkward.

But apparently Fang did. His face went from extremely tired, to astonished disbelief in a matter of seconds.

"No! Guys, no! It's not like that! Nothing happened! We talked and fell asleep, that's it."

While Fang was talking, realization dawned.

They thought that we'd….um….gone all the way last night.

I thought about how we must look, all snuggles together. Fang only had the black pants on, and I had my bra and underwear on. I blushed a deep red, and pulled the deep blue comforter around me.

"Oh. No. It wasn't like that, guys. We're way too young. We just…" I didn't know how to explain it. I was actually comfortable with Fang, even with just underwear and stuff on. I loved him with the deepest kind of love I'd ever felt. But the whole flock was a different story.

I could see on Iggy's face that he was glad he couldn't see right now. And every one of them looked liked they just wanted to bolt out of the room and forget anything had happened. This was completely fine with me.

One by one they disappeared, until it was just Angel and Total left.

"You guys should get ready for school. And Jeb made breakfast," Angel said with a very sweet smile, and then disappeared down the hall.

"That was awkward." Fang said after a minute. I rolled my eyes.

"I bet they don't believe us!" I hissed, believing that it was true.

"Nah. They believe us. We don't lie that much to them." He said with a grin. "That they know of."

We cracked up.

Eventually, we calmed down, and with a final kiss, I took my t-shirt and went back to my room to get my stuff and get dressed.

I was the last one at the table. Jeb smiled as I sat down, and I only scowled. Iggy passed me the syrup and about fifteen pancakes on a plate, plus a ton of bacon, and four pieces of toast. I wolfed my food down hungrily.

I finally looked up and noticed why everyone was snickering.

Fang wasn't wearing any dark clothes.

I immediately cracked up and choked a little on the food that was in my mouth.

He scowled at me.

"I accidently added too much bleach to his clothes." Iggy said with a snicker.

Fang glared at him.

I laughed harder.

I noticed that it was one of his regular black shirts, with no design, except that it was white. And his dark wash jeans were faded.

"I have no clothes." He growled angrily to his plate.

I laughed even harder, tears streaming out of my eyes. "You mean that you 'accidently' bleached _all _ of his black clothes?" I managed to ask Iggy.

He responded by slapping a high five with Gazzy.

"I'll get you back, Ig." Fang said in a menacing voice.

"Oooh, scary!" I said with a giggle.

I actually was worried for Iggy. There was no telling what Fang would do. I almost couldn't wait.

And then I saw Fang's white shirt and laughed again.

Eventually, we all piled in Jeb's Tahoe, which is a brand of a big suburban, and we were off to school.

Angel and Gazzy were dropped off first, and both saw some kids they met at the party, and ran off to meet them.

Nudge was a little more hesitant, but she finally got out and saw a familiar face from the party, and waved goodbye to us.

Finally, it was time for me, Fang, and Iggy to get out.

Iggy looked nervous, and Fang had a firm grip on my hand.

"Just go to the office, which is right through the front door, and you guys will get your schedules." Jeb said.

That sounded so final, as if we wouldn't be coming back.

We walked up to the door together, with Iggy touching the hem of my hoodie every few seconds.

As we reached the office, a nice lady sitting in a nice looking desk greeted us with a warm smile.

"You must be the Batchelder children." She said, still smiling. The smile faltered when she saw the death grip I had on Fang's hand. Confusion crossed her features briefly, and then she snapped back to reality and handed us each a couple of pieces of paper.

"Um, now, what are your names?" she asked, seeming confused with her little list.

"I'm Nick." Fang said in a bored voice. Her smile grew less warm.

"Brian." Iggy said in a barely controlled voice. I knew he had no idea what the room looked like, how to escape. I knew that he really wanted to _see_. I knew that he could hear a bunch of weird noises that were very unfamiliar.

I reached over and squeezed his arm.

"Uh, I'm Max." I said, and the lady's smile disappeared completely.

What? Max could totally be a girl's name. Just like Sam, or Alex.

But that didn't seem to be the problem.

A few minutes later, we had it all figured out.

All of our lockers were right around the same area, but Fang was with Iggy in the morning mostly, and I was with him in the afternoon. That would be okay. But I was not okay with everything else.

Fang and I would only see each other during lunch, and study hall

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_A nice long chapter!! I've been sick, so I probably won't have chapters for a while, what with so much make up work at school and everything! And the schools don't exist either. Hope you enjoyed it! Reviewsssssssss! _


	11. School Day

_I probably have time for a really super short chapter! And this chapter is dedicated to a random reviewer! Hm…. I'll pick…! Thanks to you too, for reviewing! This chapter will explain their school day. I'm sorry I didn't include that in the last chapter, but I had no time. And Tuesday is my last day of testing!! Yay!! And has anyone gotten the new Devil Wears Prada CD??? You know, With Roots Above and Branches Beneath. It's super awesome! Anyways, here's numero once! (number eleven)  
_

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In my first class, I was early, because Jeb had insisted on waking us up that early.

I have to say, it was a pretty large school for an island. But everyone that walked into the classroom moseyed on over to me—slouched in my seat—and introduced themselves. When I saw some guy walk in, dressed in black, I actually thought it was Fang. But only for a second. His walk was all wrong. Too confident. Fang walked with a little bit of confidence, but mostly with the silent grace of a predator.

Anyway, mystery guy's eyes locked onto me, then slid down to my chest and he grinned and loped over to me. I scowled at his overly-sure face.

"You're the new girl. Krystal, right?" he said in a deep voice. I didn't like it. It was …off.

"No. I'm Max. Krystal's my little sister, and she's in eighth. I think." I said in a flat tone. I just wanted him to go away.

Surprise briefly overtook his features. "Cool. I'm Brandon."

Pretty soon, he'd memorized my schedule, and to my absolute horror, we had every class together.

"I'll show ya around. This school can get confusing. But it's got lots of people to meet and hang with." He smiled again. A lazy smile. That I didn't like.

I was pulling my wings in tightly, and they hurt. Really bad. I let them out, just a little. Not enough to where they'd be noticeable, but enough to relieve some of the pain.

To my relief, class started, and Brandon went away.

--

Fang's first class was boring, and he spent the first few minutes explaining everything to Iggy, to make him feel better about not being able to see it all.

A petite strawberry blonde girl appeared in Fang's line of vision, staring at him with what looked like nervousness.

"Um, hi. I'm Sarah. We met at your mom's party. Well, actually, I met your..uh…sister, Max." Fang sighed with what would seem like no emotion, but what was really extreme impatience.

He saw Iggy smile a little from the corner of his eye. Iggy knew how he felt.

"Nick, and this is Brian." Fang motioned with one elbow to Iggy. Iggy nodded in acknowledgement. "Max has different classes in the morning." Fang added reluctantly. He really wanted her to be here with him. And he was tired again. Really tired. Fang didn't know why, but being on the verge of death took everything out of you. Either that, or it was a side effect of the expiration date.

"Is something wrong with Brian?" Sarah asked, like Iggy wasn't even there. Her big brown eyes were a little confused, and awed. Fang could tell that she liked him.

"I'm blind." Iggy said, his voice bored. Sarah's eyes widened and she turned her full attention to Iggy.

--

Lunch finally came, with Brandon following me like a lost puppy, chattering annoyingly in my ear the whole way. I wanted to knock him out. But then I smiled grimly when realization dawned. He liked me, and I was 'taken'. Boy, did he ever have a surprise waiting for him.

I finally, _finally _walked into the cafeteria, and immediately scanned it with my raptor vision for Fang and Iggy. I saw them, and Fang looked up, feeling my eyes on him. He broke into a small, tired grin.

"Is that your brother?" Brandon asked.

'Not really." I said, and walked faster towards Fang, who was already moving toward me, weaving through the crowd.

He caught me in his arms, and I held on tight. I looked over Fang's shoulder to Iggy, whose head was bent to a strawberry blonde one. I recognized her. She had been with Stephanie at that party.

Fang's head bent down to mine, and our lips met. It was a short kiss, but it brightened my day.

We pulled away at the same time and turned to the table where he'd been sitting. And his arm stayed around me. I heard Brandon following us, and I knew he felt awkward. I smiled to myself.

"We got you a tray." Fang said, sitting down with beside Iggy, and pulling me into the chair next to him.

Brandon stood awkwardly for a moment, then spoke.

"Uh, can I sit here?" he asked, clearing his throat.

"Sure. F—Nick, this is Brandon." Fang rose an eyebrow, and Iggy chuckled, muttering, "Fnick," under his breath. I pulled the extremely full tray towards me, and threw an apple at Iggy. It thumped satisfyingly against his head.

He scowled while Fang, Brandon, and I laughed. No normal human could've heard what Iggy'd said, but it was still funny. My stomach rumbled impatiently, and then I began to wolf down food.

I watched Fang carefully out of the corner of my eye. He looked tired. But that was probably my fault. I'd woke him up, and then we'd made out for a long time.

His tray was empty, and so was his gaze as he stared at the table.

My heart sank a little, and my eyes filled. I blinked several times and finished off my food.

Brandon pulled me back into the real world.

"Will you go to the back to school dance with me?"

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_I had to end it. I'm tired. I have a final project to do. Review though!_


	12. Sacrifice

_Wowie! __**71**__ reviews! Can you believe it! Well, I think I'll have a TON of time for this chapter, so here ya go! _

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"What?!" I demanded. Did he not notice how close Fang and I were?

"Max can't dance." Iggy said between gasps of laughter. I glared, but the effect was lost on him.

"And in case you haven't noticed, I have a—a boyfriend." The word sounded weird. Fang was more than that to me.

"But it would be nice to see you in a dress." Fang said with a small smile in my general direction. I rolled my eyes.

"You couldn't pay me to put a dress on." I snarled. Brandon raised his eyebrows.

"You'd look beautiful in a dress." Brandon said softly. Iggy laughed harder, Fang looked up, and I shot out of my chair.

I was about to say something, but Fang stood and grabbed my wrist.

"Max." he said. I refused to meet his gaze. "Max." he said again.

I didn't know why I was so mad at this guy.

I finally turned towards Fang. "You'd look beautiful." He whispered.

I noticed that the strawberry blonde by Iggy had disappeared. Oh well.

And then the words that Fang had just said registered in my brain, and my cheeks grew hot.

"You really think that?" I whispered. He smiled one of those rare smiles that stopped the Earth's rotation, every movement everywhere, and even made the sun look like a dull light bulb compared to it.

Ah, the poetry of a mutant bird kid.

--

Eventually, the bell rang, and we made our way to study hall. The only class I had with Fang all day.

As the students filed in, the teacher stood there, with a stupid smile on her face. I hated her already.

Once everyone seemed to be seated and mostly quiet, she introduced herself.

"Hello students. I recognize most of you from last year." Her smile faltered. "But I do see some new faces." She looked pointedly at me, Fang, and Iggy. "And we have some students that weren't in this class last year. For those of you who don't know me, I'm Ms. Campbell." She was talkative, young, and I hated her.

"So, why don't we all stand up one by one and tell a little about ourselves."

Everybody stood up and talked when it was their turn. And then it was my turn.

I remained seated, even when Ms. Campbell gave a 'disappointed smile'.

"I'm Max. I just moved here."

She looked as if she expected me to say more, but I just stared at her. She blinked rapidly a few times, then looked at Fang.

"Nick."

She looked even more disappointed. She looked at Iggy, who was last. He looked in her direction, and she shivered slightly.

_Yeah, lady. I know how you feel. It's creepy when the blind guy can almost look you in the eye, isn't it?_ I thought.

"I'm Brian."

She blinked once more, and turned away.

Ms. Campbell opened her mouth, but then the bell rang. I smiled at Fang.

Saved by the bell.

--

The rest of the day sucked, to put it simply. But it only got worse once we got back 'home'.

I walked in with Nudge and Angel, both jabbering about their days. We'd walked to their schools and then escaped to the woods, taking off for a glorious ten minute flight back to our house.

When I finally looked up to see why everyone had stopped talking all at once, except for Fang, who hadn't been talking, I froze.

"Mom? Why're you back? You just left." Ella was smiling hugely on the floor at Mom's feet.

"Jeb and I have—" she stopped, and my gaze drifted down to her hand in Jeb's. Her left hand. And the third finger had a shining diamond on it.

"You guys are—are engaged? Getting _married_?!" I demanded angrily. I didn't trust Jeb. He'd hurt me, and for a really long time, I'd thought he was dead. And then when we'd found out he wasn't, turns out he was with the bad guys. And he was my father on top of all of his betrayals.

Nudge and Angel squealed and ran over to them.

I stood there and stared as everyone went and congratulated them, even Fang.

Traitors. They were welcoming _him_ into the family. It wasn't fair to me, or any of them. Jeb had betrayed us. He'd been on _their _ side. For a few years, I'd thought he was dead, and it was the worst feeling ever. And then, when he decides to come back to life, he's a bad guy. On the wrong side.

And now he wanted to marry _my mom_ and just be welcomed back into the family, just like that? No way. No _freaking _way. This wasn't happening. He would never be considered my family, even if he was my father. _Never_.

I stomped furiously up the stairs and went into my room, slamming the door so hard I thought it was going to break. Then I yanked open my window, and then hopped out, unfurling my wings with a _snap_.

It hurt, just a little. My boo-boo wasn't completely healed yet.

But then the wind was pushing my farther and farther upward with every stroke, and I was smiling. This feeling made everything else seem a lot better. I was happy in the sky, and I knew I always would be.

I poured on the speed, and decided to experiment a little with it.

I tilted my wings, and I was suddenly shooting through the clouds. Most people would think that clouds are all fluffy and soft and fun to play inside. But take it from someone who knows; clouds are wet, cold, and they basically are _not_ fun to fly through.

As I burst out of the cloud, I hit something feathery and warm. I was about to scold the member of my flock, but then I realized that it was a seagull.

I sighed, and slowed down. I swooped below the clouds to see how far I'd gone.

But when I looked around, I couldn't see anything but the ocean. And the clouds had chased away the sun, so I couldn't tell where I was by the sun's position. And the seagull had somehow turned me around.

I headed in the direction I _thought _was back to the house. I even sped up.

But after ten minutes, there wasn't anything anywhere. Nothing but blue water, as far as I could see. Which was pretty dang far.

I started to panic, but only slightly, because I could've been in a dog crate, or dungeon, or tied up. At least I was in the sky.

But I never, _ever_ got lost, or turned around. Ever. It was almost impossible. We weren't made to get lost in the _sky_. Weren't programmed to get lost where we _belonged_.

_It just didn't happen to us. _

I began to hyperventilate.

_Max, calm down. Don't lose control. You have to get yourself out of this. Take a few deep breaths. _The Voice.

I immediately listened to it, and felt better. Okay, think. I'd traveled out maybe forty or so miles, then headed straight up from there. When I hit that stupid seagull, I turned….Wait. I hadn't turned around. I was heading west. I needed to go east.

I turned around in a big arc, and zoomed back the opposite way. I saw land almost twenty minutes later. But I knew it wasn't our island. It was completely wrong. I landed on the deserted beach, and walked in a random direction.

I tripped on something, and then everything turned black.

--

When I woke, I smelled smoke. I lifted my throbbing head, only to see none other than Mr. Chu, who was surrounded by M-Geeks, and was smoking a cigar.

"Long time no see, Chuey." I croaked. His eyes narrowed.

I attempted to sit up, but my wrists and ankles were bound to a metal table, with Velcro straps. The kind that were almost impossible to yank apart.

"I see that you have not changed, Maximum." He said in his heavily accented voice.

"Please, call me Max." I said, steel in my voice.

"And what would it take to get some water in this joint?" I demanded. And my hoarse voice didn't have the effect I wanted. But Chu motioned to one of the M-geeks.

"Go. You heard her. Water." He barked, and the M-geek walked off, its face emotionless.

"Thanks. So why have you led me to your home?" I asked curiously, noticing that we were in the middle of an expensive looking living room, the only thing out of place being the metal table I was strapped to.

The M-geek returned with a glass of water just then, and held it to my lips while I drank deeply.

"This is not my home. Just temporary. And I have a…proposition…for you. But it will not be pleasant." Mr. Chu explained.

"What kind of proposition?" I asked slowly, wondering just that.

"A life for a life. Or, I should say, a life for many lives."

"And that would include….?" I demanded, trailing off.

"One of your flock is dying, the one you call Fang, correct?" My eyes narrowed. How did he know this?

"Yeah, he got Itex's expiration date disease thing." I said, and Mr. Chu gave a short nod, as if he was confirming something.

"Yes, except that this disease works slower, and is created by my corporation. The one you call Iggy shall get it soon. But not you. No matter what we try, you will not get the disease." As Chu was speaking, my heart rate sped up. Iggy was going to get it? How soon was soon?

Then I remembered what he'd said minutes earlier. A life for many lives, huh? That would mean…

"We are willing to let everyone of your flock live, as well as the rest of your family, live. But only if you give yourself up for our experimentation. You will die, and they will live out their lives. And my company and I get all the information we want." I turned my head away.

"That's it? I just give myself up? Right now?" I asked, one tear slipping down my cheek. It didn't matter. I already knew my answer.

"Yes and no. You will have a week or so to say your goodbyes. Then we will bring you and your flock to one of my testing facilities, so you may say your final goodbyes, and then everything is over. For you, at least." He said in a flat tone, as if this was the hundredth time he'd said it.

"Okay. I'll do it. But you have to honor your word, and let them live. Please." I said with no hesitation. If I could save my flock, I would do it. No matter what.

Mr. Chu looked surprised. Like he didn't expect me to give in so easily. I allowed myself a grim smile.

"I'll do anything to save my flock." I said.

Then the world was black again.

--

I woke in my own bed.

And according to the clock on my nightstand, it was 5:16 in the morning.

I sucked in a big sleepy breath and let out a yawn.

When I went to sit up, I was hit by a wave of dizziness, and fell back on the pillows.

I heard a grunt, and turned towards the noise.

Fang was sitting up on the window seat.

"Fang?" I called softly, my voice hoarse again.

"Max!" he whispered, moving silently over to sit on the bed.

"What happened?" I mumbled. I wanted mostly to know if his expiration date was gone, and how Mr. Chu had gotten me back inside without anybody noticing.

"We heard you leave. But it wasn't until around nine that we heard you get back. I came up here to talk to you, but you were out. What happened?" His voice betrayed no emotion, but I could tell how tense and worried he was underneath it all.

"Ran into a seagull, and got turned around cause of the clouds, and I was tired. And I hit my head on the way in, so I blacked out." I said. I saw Fang's eyes narrow. He knew I was lying.

"You're lying." He pointed out softly.

"No I'm not." I insisted.

He raised his eyebrows and studied my face.

"I know you too well. Tell me the truth, Max." he demanded. I set my jaw and clenched my teeth.

"No."

"Max…" His voice sounded slightly angry, which meant that he was furious.

"I can't, Fang. I just—I can't okay? Can I have my own secrets for once? Besides, the truth doesn't matter anyways." I admitted. The truth didn't matter to me. I was saving my flock, my family, and that's all that mattered.

There was a long silence, which wasn't all that unusual for Fang.

Finally, he spoke. "Fine. But…Just go back to sleep. I'll get you some water." He practically disappeared, and then returned shortly after, with a glass of water in hand. I grabbed it from him and drank deeply.

"Thanks." I said when I was finished. He chuckled softly.

"Your mom is pretty upset though. You should talk to her later. And I don't think you should go to school tomorrow. You might have a concussion." He said simply, leaning down to kiss my forehead. My heart sank.

I made my mom sad. I'd only had her for a short period of time, and now I felt betrayed by the fact that Jeb was claiming her.

Fang turned to leave.

"Wait." I whispered. He turned back.

"Will you…stay?" I asked, embarrassed by the fact that I didn't want to sleep alone. I was too afraid to be alone.

I only had a week.

Abruptly, I was crying silently into Fang's shirt, and he was holding me, and stroking my hair in the most comforting way he could.

"Don't worry, Max." he whispered. And with three simple words, I felt better.

--

I woke in the morning to a throbbing head, and nobody beside me.

My clock showed that it was only around seven. Nobody had left yet. I went downstairs for some Tylenol.

"Good morning, Max!" Angel said, running over to hug my legs.

"Mornin' sweetie. Did you sleep well?" I said with a warm smile. She nodded.

_Look what Fang did to Iggy._ Angel's voice said in my head. I looked over to Iggy, who had a hat on.

Bright pink tufts of hair stuck out from under the hat.

I snickered.

"Wow, Fang. You dyed his hair pink?" I said with a disbelieving laugh.

Fang looked up from the kitchen sink, where he was washing out his cereal bowl.

"Not just his hair." Gazzy said with a grin. He ran around the other side of the table and carefully yanked up Iggy's shirt.

We all exploded into laughter, except for Iggy, who scowled.

"That…is…so…hilarious!" I managed to say between giggles.

Iggy's wings were pink.

--

I stayed at home. And I was bored all day, even with Ella there, since she hadn't been enrolled in the school yet. We played Monopoly. We played Foosball and air hockey. And I was still bored. Ella went out to swim and look for seashells on the beach, while I stayed inside.

Pretty soon, Mom joined me on one of the couches in the living room.

"Max, I wanted to talk to you. About….yesterday." I gritted my teeth to keep from yelling at her for her betrayal.

"I don't know how everything has been for you lately, because, I'm obviously not you. But I know I can help Fang better here, with Jeb's help. And….Jeb and I have thought about this for a long time." She looked at me with pleading eyes.

"Max, will you just talk to me? I need to know what you're thinking. I want to help you with any problems, just like a mom."

I couldn't take it.

"You could _never_ know what I'm thinking! You don't know how it feels! Any of it! It feels like you betrayed me, by marrying _him_! I can't trust him! Not ever again. And I won't have to for long!" I yelled, and darted out the front door.

I didn't fly, I just ran. I ran through the forest until I ran out of breath, which was a really long time.

I collapsed to my knees, panting hard.

All I saw was her hurt and shocked expression. She didn't know what I meant by 'not for long' , but she got the idea.

It wasn't that hard to figure out.

I threw up. Something inside me was completely repulsed by the thoughts that were running through my head. And it wasn't good that I'd over exerted myself with a serious bump on my head.

I sat on my knees, bent over for a few minutes. Then I wiped my mouth and stood.

I leapt into the air and flew back to the house, and went in through my window. I immediately went into the bathroom and brushed my teeth twice, to get rid of the taste and smell.

I sat down on my bed and turned on a random DVD and watched it until everyone else was back from school.

Fang knocked on the doorframe of the open door.

"School sucked and Brandon told everyone that he's taking you to the dance." He said, then walked away.

I stared after him openmouthed.

I shook my head to clear it and ran after him.

His door was locked.

"Fang!" I yelled. "You can't just leave me like that!" I shouted, pounding on his door.

He opened it and stood there grinning.

"Sorry. But it got you up, didn't it?" he said with a short chuckle.

I just hugged him. The dance didn't really matter. I'd be…gone… before then.

He stood stiffly for a moment, and then hugged me back.

He tilted my chin up and kissed me, for one of the last few times.

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_Longest chapter EVER!! I just moved my arm and my shoulder popped like eighty times. Ouchies. Anyway, I love reviews, reviews, reviews, and cookies! Press that button down there. I dare you._


	13. Gone, Baby, Gone

_I just can't dedicate chapters to just one or a few reviewers! From here on out, every chapter is dedicated to every single one of you! _

_Onward with chapter 13, however long it may be! _

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That night, I fell asleep on Fang's bed. And I had an insanely weird dream.

Fang picked me up, bridal style, and carried me to my room. And left me alone.

He wouldn't leave me alone, especially if he even _suspected_ what was going to happen to me. It just wasn't like him, so I knew I was dreaming.

--

I woke up in my own bed, cold, and alone.

So last night's dream wasn't really a dream.

I sighed and got dressed, going downstairs in to the kitchen, following the very promising smells of breakfast.

"Hey! Iggy's not a pink marshmallow anymore!" I said with a snicker. He rolled his eyes. My morning was looking brighter.

But then it went downhill when Fang hadn't shown up by the time we were about to leave.

At one point, I looked up, feeling someone staring at me, and met my mom's gaze. She gave a bright and hopeful smile. I just blinked, showing no emotions, and looked away. I still caught her hurt look out the corner of my eye.

"Hey, Ig, where's Fang?" I asked as we all piled into the car.

"Dunno. I heard him leave last night. He hasn't shown himself since. He'll probably ditch school, or be a good boy and show up." I rolled my eyes at Iggy's remarks, but, as usual, the effect was lost on him.

I just made a noise of acknowledgement, and stared out the window.

But when we got to school, Fang was nowhere to be seen.

I felt alone without him.

At lunch, with Brandon still talking my ear off (he was almost as bad as Nudge), Fang still hadn't shown.

"So, you excited about the dance?" Brandon asked as I sat down with my tray. I gritted my teeth so I wouldn't punch him. Iggy snickered from my right side.

"Not really. In fact, I'm not going. And if I did go, it wouldn't be with _you_." I snarled.

Brandon just smiled lazily.

"Suuuure." He drawled out sarcastically.

I made a threatening noise in the back of my throat, standing up.

Iggy stopped laughing.

"Uh, dude, you don't wanna mess with her. She'll kick your butt." Iggy said, standing up beside me. We were in our own little two-person formation.

Brandon raised his hands in mock surrender, still smiling that stupid smile of his.

My fist snapped forward and hit him in the nose, a _very_ satisfying crunch reaching my ears.

Brandon howled and clutched his bleeding nose.

"Brian, dude, why'd you hit me?" he demanded. Iggy laughed.

"_I _didn't hit you. She did."

I narrowed my eyes.

"You _sexist pig_!" I shouted, then punched him again.

Brandon was howling in pain, and Iggy was with laughter.

Most of the cafeteria had gone silent, then a few people started laughing, then the whole cafeteria had joined in.

When an adult finally showed up, I got sent to the principal's office. Brandon went to the nurse.

I slumped in the chair outside the office. A few students at the table nest to ours had been brought in as well, as 'witnesses'. None of them said I'd hit him. They all said that he fell and hit his nose on the chair.

Then Brandon was sent in.

I snarled at him as he smiled at me.

Finally, they sent me in, and I got a couple big surprises. First, the principal was Anne. From Virginia.

I lunged at her, my hands curling into claws, immediately going for her throat.

"You traitor!" I yelled. "I can't believe you would show your face after what you did to us!"

Someone pulled my away.

"Max, you shouldn't attack your principal." That person said.

I recognized that voice, if only vaguely….

Ms. Campbell. So she was in on it too.

"We're just here to see that you didn't fight with Mr. Johnson here." Anne nodded to Brandon.

"Maybe I did." I said, calming down just a bit, slipping into my usual routine of defying authority.

"He says you did. But nobody else does." Ms. Campbell butted in.

"That's because he's a freaking _man whore_ that everybody hates." I said matter-of-factly, sending a steely glare in Brandon's direction.

He just smiled. Lazily. Which is what he always did.

I could've busted all three of them up, and blown that popsicle stand, but I decided that I didn't want to disappoint my mom even more, despite her recent betrayal.

And then the biggest surprise of all came. At least for that day.

Iggy ran in, with Fang and Nudge, and then Gazzy and Angel.

"We need to go _now_." Fang said, breathlessly. I was about to ask him where he'd been when the shooting started.

"M-Geeks are everywhere!" Gazzy yelled over the noise.

We broke out of the closest window and did what I'd wanted to do earlier—Get the heck outta Dodge.

The usual happened. We took off, people _oohed _and _aahed _at our wings, Gazzy and Iggy wiped out all of the M-Geeks with their endless stash of bombs. That sort of thing.

We flew around super high for a while, laughing and playing tag, dipping low over the ocean occasionally. We finally headed home, convinced that nobody was after us. 

It was actually pretty boring that the M-Geeks had attacked.

That, and the fact I knew that they were just there to tell me what I already knew—I had four days. It was Tuesday, and I'd be taken on Saturday.

The flock went inside, but Fang and I landed a little ways down the beach, deciding with only a glance. There were clouds, lots of gray clouds, and the wind was getting faster and stronger.

"Where were you?" I demanded, pulling my wings in once I'd landed.

A big, huge, happy grin broke out on his face. A smile I'd only seen once or twice.

"Fang…Why the heck are you looking at me like that?" I asked cautiously. My heart was thumping like crazy at his smile, but something was up. He _never_ acted like this, not even on his best days.

"It's gone, Max!" His voice was so happy, I smiled, not even knowing yet what he meant.

"Wait, what's gone?" I asked, my smile disappearing.

He turned and yanked down his shirt collar.

Nothing. Nada. Zip.

There wasn't a trace of anything there. I ran my finger over his neck, just to be sure.

That meant one thing to me:

Fang wasn't dying.

_Fang wasn't dying! _

I laughed, tears bubbling over and onto my cheeks. He grabbed me by the waist and we both laughed.

His lips crushed against mine with a hungry passion.

When we pulled away, both of us were grinning stupidly and panting.

He cradled me against his chest.

"I love you, Max. I love you so much." He whispered, not sounding like himself at all.

"I love you, too." I whispered, looking up at his face, which was streaked with tears.

Yeah, happiness does that sometimes.

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_I love Faxy cliffys! And I love the fact that Brandon is—I should just wait until chapter fourteen! Haha! I almost told you! That was close. _

_I'm off to see the wizard, the wonderful wizard of Oz!_

_RRRREEEEVVVVIIIIEEEEWWWWSSSS!!!!_


	14. Storms and Time Limits

_109 reviews! Thanks to each and every single one of you! Especially Lauren for all of those reviews! Well, I have a beta now! Yays! Anyways, I have loads of time today, so I'm going to do two chapters! And Kassidy, I haven't written anymore. A wee little case of writer's block. Team Will is better!!!!!_

_Onward ho!_

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We went inside when it started raining. Fang never let go of my hand or his arm stayed around my waist or on my shoulders. I was so happy, I didn't even think of my own death that was in four short days.

I began wondering what they would do. Would they take us in the middle of the night? Or would they fight us and take us? If the flock saw that I was going willingly, without a fight, they would give up too.

Fang leaned down to whisper in my ear. "You should forgive your mom."

That's all he had to say. I was so happy; I couldn't even exclude Jeb from it. It was if Fang and I were in a bubble of glowing light, and I wanted everyone to be a part of it. Nothing could go wrong.

Not even the raging storm outside could wipe the smile off of my face.

When my mom caught my eye and smiled, I smiled right on back. I could tell she was relieved that I forgave her.

Pretty soon, the wind was howling, and lightning was lighting the whole house, even though the clouds were black as night. Rain pounded on the windows.

When the lights went out, we all collected flashlights and candles and huddled together in living room, watching the storm through the glass wall. With Fang beside me, I wasn't claustrophobic at all. I was actually pretty comfortable.

Until Mom found the right station on the radio and heard that there was an unpredicted Category Five hurricane coming toward us.

"Shouldn't we go to the basement or something?" Gazzy suggested.

And so we did.

And we heard the wind howling above us. And I realized something. Iggy had gone with Ella to buy groceries. And they weren't back yet.

I leapt to my feet and started for the stairs.

"Max, where are you going?" Fang asked, immediately following me.

"Iggy and Ella aren't back yet!" I said, itching to be off.

Mom was suddenly aware of their absence.

"They aren't back yet?!" She demanded.

"No, I have to go help them! You never know, they could be hurt!" I was yelling over the wind now. Fang grabbed my arm.

"Max." I tried to yank my arm away, but he was too strong.

"Fang, if you try to stop me…" I warned.

His face hardened.

"I'm not stopping you. I'm going instead of you."

My mouth opened slightly. He couldn't be doing this. I was going to die anyways. I should risk my life. My flock was my life. And they were in danger.

After Iggy left to be with his parents when we were staying with Anne, I knew I couldn't stand to be away from my flock again. I couldn't deal with missing one of them.

"I'm going with you." I said through my teeth.

"No."

"Fang—" I started, but he interrupted me.

"I don't wanna have to do this, Max."

Before I could process what he'd meant, his fist shot out and then the black enveloped me.

--

When I woke up, Mom informed me that it'd only been about an hour. The storm was still raging on.

I gathered Nudge, Gazzy, and Angel into my arms.

"Max?" Gazzy looked up at me, his big blue eyes worried.

"They'll be okay, right?" he asked, his voice wavering just a bit. I knew what he was feeling. His best friend was caught in a bad storm, more than likely hurt. And Fang had gone out to save him.

I was going to kill Fang when he got back.

But he was probably right to do what he'd done. But… It was still stupid.

"Yeah, Gaz, they'll be fine. Fang went to go get them. He's probably the most capable of us all. He'll get them back." I said, and all three of them seemed to visibly relax.

But I knew the truth. They most definitely weren't fine. They could even be….

No, I won't let myself think like that.

_Go upstairs, Max. Now!_ The Voice.

I immediately leapt up and headed for the stairs.

"Max!" My mom called after me.

"I'll be right back!" I called.

I ran up the stairs and pushed the door open.

Fang was stumbling in the back door holding Ella, with Iggy collapsing behind him. I didn't know why he used the door. There were holes in the ceiling, and all of the glass was blown out.

"Fang!" I yelled, running towards him. The wind was pushing me back, so I didn't go as fast as I would've liked.

"Take Ella!" he shouted. I could tell he was drained of most of his energy.

I grabbed Ella from him and he turned around to get Iggy, who was unconscious.

We slowly made our way to the basement door, drenched from the rain.

With difficulty, we shut the door, and then carried the two bodies downstairs.

"Are they okay?" Nudge asked, her brown eyes wide with fear.

"I—I don't know." I said, watching my mom check their pulses.

"They're both alive. Ella's pulse is faint, but…She's okay." I could tell that it hurt my mom to say things like that. Her own daughter was dying. Hurt. In pain.

"Iggy has a few broken ribs and his left ankle is probably broken. He'll just need a lot of rest. Ella has broken ribs, too, and her right leg is broken, as well as her right wrist. She more than likely has a concussion." Mom was whispering.

I shrugged away from Fang and turned towards him, a steely glare set on him.

"Why'd you do that?" I demanded.

He just stared at me, his eyes drooping a little.

"Fang, why did you risk your life? You just got out of your death today, and you're already trying to get yourself killed!"

Suddenly, Fang drooped towards me, and my arms automatically reached out and caught him.

"Fang!" I cried, slouching to the floor, my knees buckling under his dead weight.

I heard his gasps for breath.

"Mom! Help him! He can't breath!" I yelled. She came rushing over.

I laid him flat on the ground and saw the huge purple spot on his throat.

"Max, get me a pen!" my mom ordered, ripping Fang's shirt off. I found one and handed to her.

She pulled a pocketknife out of nowhere and did some scary stuff to Fang that involved sticking the pen in his throat.

I made the other kids go away to check on Iggy and Ella and then kneeled beside her.

She did something else I didn't see, and blood squirted out of the pen, and then Fang was breathing again.

Tears welled up in my eyes. I'd almost lost him again. That seemed to be happening a lot lately.

Mom sighed and sat back, running a shaking hand through her hair.

"What's wrong with him?" I asked, grabbing his hand, my eyes never leaving his.

His chest was moving up and down normally now. Well, as normal as it can get with us mutant bird-kids.

"Something probably hit him in the throat, damaged his trachea." She said, patting my leg.

"He'll be okay, won't he?" I asked, my voice sounding almost exactly like Gazzy's had earlier.

She nodded. "He'll probably be okay in about three hours. And I'm estimating here. You guys heal faster than I'm used to." She gave a tiny smile.

Those words made me feel immensely better.

She got up and went to check on Iggy and Ella.

--

As the storm raged overnight, we all slept down in the basement, and I never left Fang's side.

But then they came. Three days early.

I saw them, and didn't warn the flock.

I knew that this moment would haunt me forever, but I just couldn't warn them. My time was over.

It was time for my sacrifice.

It was time for me to save my family's lives.

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_Yay! This chapter wasn't as long as I was hoping for, but I'm doing another chapter. It gets sad in the next chapter. Tell me what you think!_

_Reviews!!! _

_REVIEWS ARE LIKE OXYGEN! YOU NEED OXYGEN TO BREATH. YOU HAVE TO BREATH TO LIVE. THEREFORE, I NEED REVIEWS TO LIVE!_


	15. Finding Hope

_Wow! I have 130 reviews! *is astonished at number of reviews* you guys rock! My reviewers, I mean…Most of you pester me to update, and tell me I sound like James Patterson himself! That's an honor! And the characters are all a little OOC for this chapter. Ok?_

_Anyways, here is the last chapter for this story…or is it?_

_*cries* I love all of you guys so much! But there may or may not be a sequel. Alas, here is the last chapter. *sniff*_

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I woke up in a completely white room. It smelled like a lab, and I immediately tried to find a way out.

Then I remembered where I was, what I was doing.

I relaxed a little, then relaxed more when I saw that my whole flock was okay, scattered about the white room.

Even Total was here. And Jeb. And Ella. And my mom.

I saw Fang sit up silently, instantly awake.

He caught my eye, giving me a look that said '_We have to get out of here_'.

I just closed my eyes and looked the other way.

When I looked back at him, he was staring at me, disbelief on his face.

I knew what he was thinking. Why wasn't I fighting? Why was I so calm about this?

As soon as everyone woke up, they would be told the truth. And then I would say my final goodbyes.

Soon, Total, Nudge, and Angel woke up, instantly alert like Fang had been. They looked for me, and then Angel crawled silently towards me.

I wrapped an arm around her.

"Hey, sweetie." I whispered.

"Where are we?" she asked, turning her big blue eyes to me.

"I don't know, sweetie." That was the truth. I knew _why _we were here. But that was pretty much it. I didn't know where we were, how we'd gotten here, or how long we'd been there.

"Why are we here? Who wants us here? Is it Mr. Chu?" she asked.

"Yeah, it's Mr. Chu." That's all I said. I didn't even think about what was going to happen soon. I just waited somewhat patiently for everybody else to wake up. Then I would tell them what was going to happen.

When everyone else was awake, which was about an hour later, Fang got up and went to the farthest corner of the room and sat there. Just sat there. Like he knew what was going to happen, like he knew what I was about to say. He'd probably figured it all out.

My mom and Ella were surprised to find us all there. Jeb looked a little…not surprised.

Yeah, _that _wasn't suspicious at all.

"Max, what's going on?" Gazzy asked quietly.

My heart thudded in response to his question. I didn't want to leave them, but I had no choice. I was promised that they'd be unharmed. But that's only if I sacrificed myself.

But I had to tell them.

"I, uh, kinda made a deal with Mr. Chu." I saw the thoughts flicker across their faces. Betrayal, hurt, disbelief.

"What kind of deal?" My mom asked in a tight voice.

"Not that kind. I'm just as much a victim as you guys are, maybe even more of a victim." I swallowed and took a deep breath, trying to build up the strength to tell them.

Fang wouldn't even look at me. I was pretty sure now that he knew where this was going.

"More of a victim?" Iggy asked. "How so?"

"I—I—I'm here to say goodbye." I whispered, looking down at my hands.

That got them all stirred up.

"Goodbye? Where are you going, Max?" Angel asked. I stroked her blonde curls.

"I'm—I'm—" _I'm going to save you guys._ I thought towards her.

"Going where?" she pressed.

"I—" I just couldn't tell her.

"She's dying. Can't you see that? They're killing her. She thinks they're gonna save us. Keep us from dying." Everyone turned to Fang, shocked that he'd spoken up. And at his words.

"Is this true, Max?" Jeb asked.

I blinked back tears and looked him in the eyes.

"Yes." I whispered, just as three white coats with tasers walked in.

"We are here to escort you the waiting room. All of you." One of them said.

I stood and walked over to them without a word.

My flock just stared.

"Don't just sit there, move!" I snapped, and they all scrambled to follow.

I felt bad doing this to them. My final moments, and I wasn't saying goodbye.

Especially Fang. I knew he felt betrayed by me. But I had to do this.

The white coats seemed surprised that we'd gone along willingly. I heard two of them whispering and moved a little closer.

"Chu said that if we had the leader, they would all come. But he said we were only experimenting on the leader, Maximum. That the rest could go free." One was saying. I rolled my eyes and stared at my feet.

White coats were idiots till the end.

We reached a white 'waiting room' with a white couch and several white chairs. The room was divided in half by a big pane of glass. It looked about ten inches thick. There was a white room on the other side, almost exactly the same, except there was a door in the middle of the farthest wall.

The white coats put me in the room with the door, and said that I had twenty minutes. At least the glass projected sound.

My mom was crying as she put her hand to the glass.

"You don't have to do this, Max." she said, a sob breaking her voice.

"Yes, I do. I love you Mom. I'm glad you're my mom." I said, a single tear rolling down my cheek.

Ella was next. "I'm so glad I have a sister like you. Even if…even if it was only for a little while." She said, her brown eyes sad.

Then it was Jeb, and Total.

"I'm proud of you, Max." he said, and I cried harder.

Total had big, fat tears rolling down his furry face. "I'll miss you, Max. Even though you were a bit of a dictator." I rolled my eyes and gave a short laugh.

"Love you too, Total."

Iggy was crying silently, and the three younger kids were sobbing openly. Fang was emotionless.

I spoke to my flock.

"I love you guys so much. Don't do anything stupid, okay? Fang and Iggy'll take care of you guys. I'll miss you guys." I said softly.

I laughed abruptly.

They all looked at me funny. "I wish I could hug you guys." I said with a soft chuckle.

Angel and Nudge smiled, and Iggy rolled his eyes.

When Fang walked up behind them, they all moved away.

"Max, please don't do this." Fang said, completely out of character for him. He didn't beg. He _never_ begged. _Ever_.

"I have to." I said softly.

"No, you don't, Max! You can fight! _We_ can fight!" he said, banging his fist against the glass.

"Not if we all want to live. I'm dying so you guys can live." I said, still not looking into his eyes. If I did, I might give in and fight.

_This is how you save the world, Max, _said the Voice.

"And you believe them?!" Fang shouted. I winced.

"I have to. This is how I save the world." I said, finally looking up into Fang's eyes. I saw a pain I'd never seen before from any person. And he was feeling it. Expressing it.

"I love you, Max. Don't do this." He said, leaning on the glass, his hands holding him up.

A tear rolled down his cheek.

I placed my hands on the other side of his, wishing that the glass wasn't there to separate us.

"I love you. Please." Fang said, a sob ripping through his chest. I was crying now. Sobs were ripping through me now.

"I can't. I—I have to do this." I said placing my forehead on the glass. I heard the door to my side open.

"Maximum Ride. We are here to take you to the operating room." A white coat said.

"I love you, Fang." I said, and walked over to the white coat.

Fang started yelling and banging on the glass. The pain in his face was unbearable.

Jeb, my mom, Iggy, and Nudge struggled to hold him back.

I hung my head and followed the white coats down the last hallway I'd ever see.

As they closed the door, I could still hear Fang screaming my name. I gave a final sob, wiped my face, and shut my mouth, walking behind the white coats with my chin up.

I was ready to save the world.

--

Fang watched in horror as Max went with _them_ without hurting someone. Or trying to get out and save everyone.

He started bashing his fists against the glass, trying to break it, trying to save her, trying to change her mind.

But then his own family held him back. He struggled, crying, shouting her name, fighting against them, trying to get away, trying to get to her.

When the door closed behind her, he sagged towards the floor, and the many sets of hands holding him caught him.

They all cried together.

When they fell asleep hours later, they woke up in the house again, in the basement.

Fang was up first. He looked silently at his family, and then went up the stairs just as quietly. He flew out into the night.

He landed a ways down the beach, and then he fell to his knees.

Grabbing fistfuls of sand, he turned his head toward the sky, yelling to the gods, cursing everything, everyone, for his loss.

And then he cried. Cried for the beautiful brown eyes he would never see again. Cried for the sunny brown-blonde hair he'd never see again. He cried for the death of his soul mate.

His heart was ripped in two pieces. He was missing half of himself now.

And he would never see Max again.

--

I never knew death would be so painful.

As they operated on me, and slowly killed me, I thought of everything and everyone I'd miss.

I'd miss my mom, and her chocolate chip cookies. I'd miss her motherly smell. I'd miss the way she smiled whenever I got impatient, or protective of my flock.

I'd miss Ella. I'd miss the way she talked about useless, _normal _teenage things. I loved the way she was so hyper. And I'd miss my normal sister.

I'd miss Jeb. Even though I hadn't trusted him since Angel was taken, I'd miss him. I'd miss my mentor. He saved me from the school. I would miss my….father.

I don't know if it really happened in my real body, but in my mind, while I was slowly being killed, I started crying while remembering my family.

I would always miss flying. I would miss my flock.

I would miss Angel's sweet innocence that masked the mastermind underneath. She would always have a special place in my heart as my baby.

Gazzy and his messy hair that never seemed to obey, just like Nudge's. I would miss the way he could make anything and everything blow up.

Nudge's talkativeness; her fashion sense and mocha skin.

Iggy's way to make everything seem better, even if he was the worst off, being blind. I'd miss his cooking.

And Fang. I'd miss him. His rare smile. The way he always wore black. How he looked so vulnerable in his sleep. The way he handled the little kids when they were hurt, or when they'd had a nightmare. How he'd said he would never do anything I didn't want to do.

I loved him. I loved everything about him. He was the only one for me, and I'd only known it for a short little time.

After hours on end of pain, both physical and emotional, I finally slipped under into the black.

And I knew I was dead.

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_The end—Or is it?_


	16. AN Please Read!

Hello dearest readers.

It's me again.

Sorry, so very super sorry for not updating Forever Gone. Well, for some of you, you didn't know it existed!

So here: THERE'S A SEQUEL UP!! IT'S CALLED **FOREVER GONE**!

Please read it and review.

Side note: Because of a bunch of reasons, I've been busy, and went on a temporary hiatus. I will be back! As a matter of fact, I might just post the newest chapter for Forever Gone!

Review! Thank you for reading! It's been fantabulous!


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